James Murray, Lord Philiphaugh

James Murray was born on July 11, 1655 in Eddleston, Peeblesshire. His father, Sir John Murray of Philiphaugh, was a politician and legal official who represented the Selkirkshire constituency in the Parliament of Scotland from 1661 to 1663; he also served as a commissioner for supply in 1661 and 1667, and commissioner for the borders in 1665. Murray's mother was Anne Murray, who was the daughter of Archibald Douglas, 13th of Cavers.[1]

Murray attended the University of Edinburgh, graduating from the institution in 1674. After his father died in 1675, Murray also sat in the Scottish Parliament, representing the constituency of Selkirkshire as well. In June 1678, Murray sat on the Convention of the Estates of Scotland which assembled in Edinburgh. During his lengthy political career, Murray served as a commissioner for supply in 1678, 1685, 1690, and 1704.[1]

Murray soon became involved in a dispute while serving as Sheriff of Selkirk with Scots Army officer John Urquhart of Meldrum over issues of legal jurisdiction between the two parties (Urquhart had been appointed as a justice of the peace). The Privy Council of Scotland heard the case in November 1680, issuing a ruling in October 1681 which stipulated that Murray was to be removed from his position as Sheriff of Selkirk.[1][2]

In 1684, Murray was arrested and imprisoned following the discovery of the Rye House Plot, a secret plot to assassinate the Stuart royals King Charles II and his brother (and heir to the throne) James, Duke of York.[3] In September of that year, Murray was brought before the Scottish Privy Council and, throwing himself before the 1st Duke of Queensberry, confessed to his involvement in the plot upon being threatened with torture.[4][5] Murray was eventually released on a bond of caution and granted a royal pardon on the condition that he testify against his accomplices.[1]

Murray proceeded to testify against a wide range of accomplices, many of whom had already fled Scotland for other regions of Europe and were tried in absentia by the Scottish government. Testimony supplied by Murray was used in the trials of Walter Scott, 1st Earl of Tarras, Sir Patrick Hume and Robert Baillie of Jerviswood (with Murray's testimony leading to Baillie's execution on 24 December, 1684).[6][7] As a contemporary observer noted a few years after the event, Murray "had a chief hand in ruining many families" during this period via his testimony.[1]

In spite of Murray's unpopularity in Scotland due to the testimony he gave, after the Glorious Revolution of 1688, which saw William of Orange overthrow the House of Stuart and assume control over the English throne, his fortunes began to recover. Murray was appointed as a ordinary lord of session in November 1689 and granted the barony "Lord Philiphaugh". During this period, Murray served as a personal advisor to James Douglas, 2nd Duke of Queensberry. In May 1696, Murray became a member of the Scottish Privy Council and a lord of the exchequer.[1]

In 1698, the 2nd Duke of Queensberry unsuccessfully attempted to appoint Murray to the position of Lord Justice Clerk; political disputes between Queensberry and the Duke of Argyll "made consensus over appointments quite impossible." Three years later, the Earl of Selkirk was due to be replaced from his position as Lord Clerk Register, and Queensberry nominated Murray to succeed him, which was countered by Adam Cockburn's nomination. However, after Queen Anne succeeded to the throne in 1702, Murray was appointed to the position in November of that year.[1]

During this period, Murray continued to serve as an effective political advisor. In 1700, Murray encouraged Queensberry to grant several concessions to the Parliament of Scotland over the disastrous failure of the Darien scheme, which had bankrupted much of the Scottish aristocracy and caused widespread discontent. While serving as Lord Clerk Register, the Act anent Peace and War 1703 and the Act of Security 1704, both of which were responses to the English Act of Settlement 1701, proved to be political setbacks for both Murray and Queensberry.[1][8][9]

The 2nd Duke of Queensberry, who Murray served as a political advisor.

On June 1704, Murray was removed from political power following the discovery of the "Scotch plot", an unsuccessful attempt by the 2nd Duke of Queensberry to incriminate his political rival, John Murray, 1st Duke of Atholl after being manipulated by Simon Fraser, 11th Lord Lovat. Murray was temporarily replaced in the office of Lord Clerk Register by James Johnston, and the 2nd Duke of Queensberry also briefly stepped back from the Scottish political scene.[1][10]

On 7 April, 1705, Murray returned to power, and once again assumed control of the office of Lord Clerk Register, where he assisted Queensberry in successfully passing the 1707 Acts of Union through a divided Scottish Parliament.[1] The act, which was also passed in the English Parliament, united the kingdoms of Scotland and England into Great Britain.[11] Queensberry's support of the Acts of Union made him deeply unpopular among the Scottish public.[12]

When Queensberry, then serving as Lord High Commissioner in 1707, attempted to pass an Act of Parliament which would impose abjuration upon the Old Pretender, Murray opposed the attempt, warning that "such an act would carry us so far into the measure of England about the succession, that they would become careless and indifferent about the Union". Murray's advice successfully led Queensberry and his political associates to dismiss the idea.[13]

On 1 July, 1708, Murray died while staying at Inch, Wigtownshire. As historian A. J. Mann noted, though Murray's last will and testament has since been lost, "he was clearly a man of means", with his estate compromising lands in Kershope Burn, Roxburghshire and Philiphaugh, Selkirkshire; the latter property had been owned by the Murray family since the 1520's. These estates passed into the ownership of his first son, John.[1]

Murray, like many in the Scottish elite, also held investments in the Company of Scotland Trading to Africa and the Indies. The company was founded to monopolise Scotland's overseas trade with Africa, India and the West Indies, and was also responsible for the disastrous Darien scheme.[14][15] His position as Lord Clerk Register was succeeded by David Boyle, 1st Earl of Glasgow, who had also supported the union between Scotland and England.[16][17]

In his personal memoirs, Scottish spy John Macky described Murray as being of "fair complexion, fat, middle sized" and "clever"; Mann describes him as having "the wit to rekindle an effective political career". On 24 April, 1678, Murray married his first wife, Anne, who was the daughter of Sir Patrick Hepburn of Blackcastle. Three years later in 1681, he married his second wife, Margaret, the daughter of Sir Alexander Don, 1st Baronet. Though Murray had no children by his first marriage, he had three sons and five daughters with Margaret.[1]

Murray's first son, John, also chose to pursue a career in politics as well, returning to the British Parliament representing Lanark Burghs after winning a by-election in 1725.[18] In 1727, John returned unopposed in that year's elections for the same constituency, though in the 1734 election he returned for the Selkirkshire seat instead. After returning unopposed for the same seat in the 1741 election, John was opposed by a rival politician in the 1747 elections, but his opponent died before the elections occurred and was replaced by another candidate who was defeated.[19]

In addition to his political career, John also served as a legal official as well, succeeding to the position of Sheriff of Selkirk after his father's death; he served in the position from 1708 until 1734.[20] On 31 December, 1711, John married Lady Eleanor Hamilton, the eldest daughter of aristocrat Lord Basil Hamilton; the marriage resulted in four sons and two daughters. He died on 2 July, 1753, leading to a sudden parliamentary by-election where Sir Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet, of Minto succeeded his Selkirkshire seat in Parliament, holding the constituency until 1765.[20]

Murray's renown in Scotland during this period led him to be featured in Scottish folk music. In the Border ballad The Outlaw Murray, which was first published in Walter Scott's 1802 breakthrough anthology work Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, a reference is made to Murray's tenure as a lord of session. This mention of him has led folklorist Francis James Child to conclude in The English and Scottish Popular Ballads that the ballad was written sometime between 1689 and 1702, though he also noted that any original manuscripts of the ballad had since been lost.[21]